Last night's NBA game between the home-team Minnesota Timberwolves and the Orlando Magic got pretty rough and rowdy. Officials ejected Mo Bamba and Austin Rivers, along with three other players, after a brawl broke out in the third quarter on Friday (February 3). While other players such as the Magic's Jalen Suggs also contributed, Bamba and Rivers spurred most of the altercation. Moreover, Rivers ran up the court towards the Magic bench, where Bamba confronted him. As things escalated quickly, they threw punches and eventually a whole host of people were going at it. In fact, the two star players kept fighting off the court.
"Orlando 90 Timberwolves 75," one fan tweeted. "Wretched night for Wolves & we had a fight. After ejections, Mo Bamba came charging down hallway at Austin Rivers. Bamba got to home locker room door & security was pushing back Rivers. The foul-mouthed insults hurled were loud & impressive." Still, press asked both players about the incident afterwards. On his part, Bamba declined comment, while Rivers claimed he acted in self-defense. However, things got even more heated on Instagram, where both players gave accounts of what happened. For example, Bamba implied that Rivers had it coming with a meme on his Instagram story.
Meanwhile, Rivers' response was much more pointed at the Sheck Wes song's namesake. "Buddy I went at you 1 on 5 !!!" he wrote on his IG story. "U needed ur team mates other wise u would of been chocked out. Talking about find out. We only know u from an old rap song...not hoops. STFU. And Orlando my city. Ask around an actually find out. They don't mess with u there....Facts!" He ended his message with a couple of shushing emojis.
However, there's a bit of bad news for anyone who wanted to see this develop in a later game. Friday's game was the last matchup between the Timberwolves and the Magic in the 2022-23 NBA season. While these players won't be able to resolve their differences on the court, let's hope they don't resolve them with a fight again. Let us know what you think of Mo Bamba and Austin Rivers' fight transcending the court in the comments below. Also, as always, stay up to date on HNHH with the latest NBA news and highlights.
